Sophie-Yen Bretez is a Vietnamese born artist who lives and works in France. Her surrealist works challenge traditional representations of the female body. Her figures, often set against an illuminated horizon, assert control over their own bodies, confronting societal views and exploring themes of recovery, self-empowerment, and existential ambiguity. Through featuring themes of female sexualisation and violence, Bretez creates a space where we can combat these experiences and create a conversation about them.

Bretez’s figures, most often nude women, are marked by an unflinching agency that governs the terms of their own presence. She subverts a certain coyness and seduction traditionally projected onto the female form. The figures stare outwards, confidently asserting themselves. They do not invite our gaze through passive allure, but meet us directly, stimulating our active observation. In doing so, she contributes to an evolving conversation about the meaning of the gaze, aligning herself with generations of female painters and photographers who have challenged its dynamics.